Various processing systems are used in the fabrication of magnetic recording disks. One such processing system is the ANELVA C-3050 disk sputtering system, available from Canon ANELVA Corporation of Japan. The ANELVA C-3050 disk sputtering system has sputtering stations, heating stations, cooling stations, loading and unloading stations, and corner stations. A corner station connects two sections of linearly arranged stations being at different orientations to each other (e.g., right angles). The corner stations on the ANELVA C-3050 system include bake heaters that are installed in the ceiling of the chamber. The bake heaters are used during system maintenance to drive moisture out of the mechanical components in the chamber for an improved base pressure in the vacuum of the system.
The bake heaters are not utilized in production operation during processing of media. The ANELVA C-3050 system utilizes a dedicated heating station for heating disks. The use of a dedicated heating station, which takes up the same space as other stations (e.g., a sputtering station), adds to the overall footprint of the disk sputtering system and, thereby, the cost of a sputtering system.